Pensioner incomes beat inflation for the first time in three years but more are having to work and weekly total remains below 2009 level

British pensioners' incomes have risen in real terms for the first time in three years, but are still £26-a-week lower than they were in 2009.

Office of National Statistics figures show that, after adjusting for inflation, pensioner households took home £477-a-week in 2012/13, which is £2-a-week more than the year before.

But it is still much lower than the £503-a-week pensioners were getting on the same basis in 2009/10, before the bottom fell out of the annuities market and retirees were forced to accept record low returns on their pension savings.

Recovering: Pensioner income rose above inflation in 2012/13 compared to the year before.

Nonetheless pensions minister Steve Webb has welcomed the above-inflation rise, which has puts partly down to the 'triple-locked' state pension that increases by the highest of inflation, earnings or 2.5 per cent each year.

He said: 'The triple lock has marked a profound shift in how the state supports pensioners and it means that 12.7 million people will be over £400 a year better off by the end of this Parliament.

'Alongside the guarantee of a strong state pension, we are also seeing more older people choose to phase their retirement in a way which suits them. This government’s historic decision to end the discrimination of the mandatory retirement age has made that possible for thousands of people.'

However, the rise in average weekly incomes has also been boosted by employment earnings of those past the retirement age. There has been a 250 per cent increase in pensioner income provided by earnings since 1998/99, as
more and more people work into their retirements.

Benefit income - including the state pension - accounted for the largest portion of pensioner incomes in 2012/13, making up 44 per cent of the money going into their bank accounts.

Workplace pensions account for 27 per cent of the income, around £130-a-week, while earnings contribute 17 per cent on average across all pensioner households.

The remainder comes from a combination of personal pensions and investment returns.

The tripled locked state pension has helped the amount retirees get in benefit income increased by 27 per cent since 1998/99.

Lifeline: The state pension and other benefits account for 44 per cent of pensioners' incomes.

On average, pensioner couples received a gross income worth £652-a-week 2012/13, a fall on the £691 in 2009/10, while single pensioners received £312-a-week.

Nigel Waterson, chairman of the Equity Release Council, said he is worried by the fact that 44 per cent of pensioner income comes from the benefits system.

He said: 'Today’s figures highlight the budget black hole facing pensioners, whose average gross weekly income of £477 is still lower than it was two years ago.

'The reliance on benefits for 44 per cent of gross income, and the lack of personal pension and earnings, is clear evidence of the need for alternative income sources in retirement.'